The university system will continue to fund Illinois’ Monetary Award Program grants for low-income students at SIUC and SIU-Edwardsville through spring 2017, SIU President Randy Dunn announced in a news release Monday.

“We are proud of our legacy of providing access and opportunity,” interim Chancellor Brad Colwell said in the released statement. “Many of our students rely on this funding to remain in school, and the lack of a state budget should not drive them away from their education.”

The news comes as public universities continue to operate with a temporary spending plan passed by state lawmakers in June. That budget allocated $151 million in backpay to the state’s nine public universities, as well as community colleges, for the program grants, which are awarded to Illinois students with the greatest financial need.

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SIU fronted the tab for the state’s MAP grants during the 2015-2016 academic school year after stagnant sessions in Springfield kept higher education without any state funding for an entire year.

In the fall, the university covered $5.6 million in MAP grants for 2,917 students. The cost at SIUE amounted to $3.4 million for 2,219 students.

Campus editor Bill Lukitsch can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @lukitsbill.

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